Stress and doubts outweighed by judges' love for work, study finds

Harriet Alexander

JUDGES lose sleep over their decisions only occasionally, they don't think collegiality is important - but they like their colleagues nonetheless - and love their work, even though the volume is unrelenting.

A study into the work practices of judges and magistrates, Judicial Workload: Time, Tasks and Work Organisation, is a peek into the mindset of the usually opaque bench-dwellers.

And not withstanding a few gripes over benefits, pay and working hours, they are revealed as a happy collective, with more than 90 per cent reporting overall satisfaction with the work.

''Some of the best lawyers find they can't make decisions and their life becomes hell,'' one judge reported. ''I have found that I can make decisions for others, and sleep at night. I'm one of the lucky ones.''

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Another: ''I have times of self-doubt, of stress, of frustration and general dissatisfaction. Seen in a calm perspective, however, I think that these negatives are outweighed by the positives.''

The report, published by the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration, was based on responses to surveys sent to all magistrates and judges, with court observations and interviews. Magistrates had less support from judicial officers, faced a greater proportion of self-represented and poorly represented litigants and were happier with their pay, but less happy with their benefits. This was despite being paid less than judges.

''This may reflect perceptions of alternative incomes levels in other available legal occupations or whether their appointment to the bench involved a reduction in income,'' said authors, Flinders University professors Kathy Mack and Sharyn Roach Anleu, and Anne Wallace of Edith Cowan.

''It is not surprising to find the judges value benefits so highly, given the substantial superannuation and other entitlements [such as car, phone or leave] they receive, compared to magistrates.''

Only 15 per cent of judges found their time was always or often taken up explaining things to unrepresented litigants, compared with 58 per cent of magistrates. Only 38 per cent of magistrates reported legal representatives were often or always well prepared, compared with 70 per cent of judges.

Magistrates were more likely than judges to find their work stressful; 47 per cent of magistrates and 31 per cent of judges describe their work as ''often or always emotionally draining''. But judges found it harder to sleep at night; 36 per cent of judges and 29 per cent of magistrates reported decision-making sometimes kept them awake.

Neither group particularly regarded interpersonal skills as essential and tiny proportions (7 per cent of judges and 8 per cent of magistrates) regarded teamwork or collegiality as essential.

But they still got on well with each other and court staff. ''I … love the more collegiate atmosphere of the court, compared to the bar,'' a judge said.

There was a chasm between magistrates who worked in the city and those in rural areas. ''In the latter [a country town] you are it,'' said one respondent. ''You have no one else to help out. It can be very lonely.''